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Independent Study Ideas Welcome back to school everybody! An independent study is a great way to turn your native curiosity into valuable college credit. It looks good on your transcript and fulfills general education goal 15. If you have never considered taking an independent study course before, please take a minute to look over these ideas to see if any of them stimulate your curiosity: Chromium in Clams Study the way that a common Virginia mollusk is affected by environmental pollution. Biodiesel Make a diesel substitute from used McDonalds fry oil. Polymer Nanostructures Learn about cutting edge technology for making tiny plastic devices. Travel to Penn State next summer for a PAID INTERNSHIP! Azulene Make a beautiful blue organic compound and learn how to make computer models of it. Kinetics of Carboxyl esterase, Fumarate Hydratase or Methemoglobin Reductase Use the UV/Visible spectrometer to monitor the behavior of an enzyme. Reaction Kinetics by NMR Learn how to use the NMR to measure reaction rates. Reaction Equilibrium by NMR Learn how to use the NMR to measure equilibrium constants. Effects of Magnetic Fields on Reaction Rates Measure the rate of a solid state reaction that is affected by the presence of a strong magnetic field. Very strange! Adsorption of Acetic Acid and Acetaminophen on Charcoal Learn how activated charcoal can be used in the emergency room to save a poisoning victim. Statistically Designed Experiments Learn how a statistical software package can allow scientists to perform experiments where several variables are changed simultaneously. This approach is used widely in industrial research laboratories to perform process optimization experiments. (Contact Dr. Lutz - Stevens 302). Crystal Growth
1. The effects of fluid flows on
crystal growth and habits.
2. The application of electrochemical
techniques for the rapid analysis of semiconductors.
3. The theoretical calculation of
crystal habits from calculated moments of momentum. [This requires a student who has
good computer programming skills.]
If you have an idea of your own that you would like to explore (even a half-baked idea), write me an e-mail (riderkb@longwood.edu), call (x2585) or stop by Stevens 301. I will help you find a mentor and sign up for your independent study course.
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